Gay Marriage Begins in Iowa April 30th – Not April 24th

Some couples have already tried to tie the knot, and now even more confusion for the state of Iowa…

A furlough is pushing the official date for gay marriage to begin back from April 24th to April 30th.

Here is a video of one couple who tried to get married when the ruling was handed down on April 3rd:

Same sex couples in Iowa are going to have to wait just a bit longer to tie the knot now, because a statewide court furlough day (aimed at cutting costs during tough budget times) means gay and lesbian couples can’t legally marry in Iowa until the last day in April.

State officials said yesterday that the state courts already had planned to put employees on furloughs that day due to budget cuts. Because the courts will be closed, same-sex couples must wait to seek marriage licenses until the following Monday, April 27. (Court rulings usually take effect 21 days after they are issued, which would have been April 24.) On top of that there is a mandatory 3 day waiting period before the licenses can be issued, pushing the actual date same sex couples can marry to April 30.

Judges are able to waive the waiting period under extraordinary circumstances, but are only supposed to do so in the same manner as they would for people of opposite genders.

The furlough on April 24 is one of eight days when the courts will close to cut costs before the end of the fiscal year, which is June 30.

Julie Phineas is a work at home mom of 2 who lives in Southern California. You can find out more about her by visiting her page on MySpace.